Interview: Ian Hunter’s Hyperactive Approach To Aging

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The first, according to the 73-year-old Mott the Hoople frontman, involves sitting at home, “getting fat and getting stupid.” Not this Englishman’s cup of tea.

“The other way is to just [say], ‘Well, I’ve been given this gift, why knock it on the head now?'” Hunter told Radio.com. “The only thing that keeps me happy is the constant creative process. Without that, I’m an extremely miserable person. So I enjoy that. What I do is I work the record, but when I get home and I’m off the road, I have to start to writing, otherwise I’m a real miserable chap.”

He added: “I think I’m on the planet to do this. Some people are plumbers, some people are electricians. I do what I do.”

Watch our video interview with Hunter below.

The “Cleveland Rocks” singer isn’t showing signs of slowing down any time soon, enjoying something of a late-career rebirth with politically-outspoken new material. His latest, 2012’s When I’m President, not only calls out lying politicians but also delves into American history ranging from the Wild West to the Civil War. (“I always root for the underdogs,” Hunter says of his choices in historical subjects.)

That said, Hunter isn’t one to predict his future, saying that “it’s not a good idea to talk about it.”

“I remember when I as writing the hits in the 70s, I’d had about four or five hits and I made the huge mistake of saying to my publicist, ‘I’ve got the formula, I know what it is,'” he said. “And that was the end of that! From now on, I don’t ever talk about stuff like that [the future].”

Hunter hits the road next week for an acoustic tour across Europe. Listen to his latest single, “When I’m President,” below.